Monday, August 15, 2011

Porsche Specialist Ruf Builds a 750-hp Sports Car for the Fearless

July 26, 2011 at 3:14pm by Alexander Stoklosa

German Porsche tuning firm Ruf has just updated its absolutely insane CTR 3 with what it perhaps needed least: more horsepower. Ruf is famous for extracting huge power from Porsches, but because of how heavily it modifies vehicles, it is actually a full-on manufacturer in the eyes of the German government. Like the V-8-powered RGT-8, the CTR 3 is also sure to scare the neighbors. It may look like a stretched and harder-edged Porsche Cayman, but Ruf calls it an original design. A tubular space frame is wrapped in aluminum and kevlar-composite bodywork, and the resulting welterweight coupe is powered by a mid-mounted turbocharged 3.8-liter engine from the 911.

The CTR 3 first hit the market in 2007 with “just” 691 hp and 657 lb-ft of torque from a twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter flat-six engine; the latest CTR 3 sees its output bumped up to 750 hp and 708 lb-ft of twist. The 3.8-liter’s might is routed to the rear wheels through a sequential six-speed gearbox and a limited-slip differential. The car weighs just over 3000 lbs, and its power-to-weight ratio is just 4.4 pounds per horsepower. Ruf claims that the CTR 3 can kick itself to 62 mph in just 3.2 seconds, and in just 9.6 seconds it will rocket past the 125 mph mark before charging on to an alleged top speed of 236 mph. If those numbers are accurate, that would make the CTR 3 even quicker than the Porsche 911 GT2 RS we recently tested.

The Ruf CTR 3 is a car that seems to lend itself to italicized descriptions, so it’s nice to know that drivers who explore its italics-worthy performance capabilities can rely on a racy integrated roll cage and four 14.96-inch brake discs squeezed by six-piston calipers to help save their bacon if they get in trouble. The suspension is equally racy, and features MacPherson struts in front and a pushrod setup with laydown coilovers in the rear with anti-roll bars at both ends. Aiding the cause are wide, sticky tires sized 8.5 by 19 inches in front and 12.5 by 20 inches in the rear, mounted on forged aluminum center-lock wheels. Ruf has yet to announce pricing for its refreshed CTR 3, but we imagine customers will cross-shop it with vacation homes in exotic locales.